Horse Trade Read Online Free PDF Page B

but it’s frustrating because we can’t find out anything about her past,” Phil said. “No one knows her previous history, so we don’t know what kind of fly spray her previous owners used, or soap, or anything.”
    “It probably wasn’t the soap,” said Stevie, showing offher new knowledge, “because most soaps are hypoallergenic.”
    “Hypo what?” Phil said.
    “ ‘Hypo’ is the opposite of ‘hyper,’ ” said Stevie, who had looked it up in the dictionary. “ ‘Hypoallergenic’ means ‘low allergy.’ ”
    “You’re a human dictionary,” Phil said.
    But meanwhile Stevie was thinking that it was time for the allergy detective, namely her, to go into high gear. For a second Stevie imagined herself in a Sherlock Holmes cap with a huge magnifying glass examining No-Name’s food and bedding.
    “How would you like to spend more time around No-Name?” Phil said.
    “Would I!” Stevie said. “In fact you can’t keep me away. I’m going to find out what No-Name’s allergic to.”
    “I could tell you liked her,” Phil said.
    “I’m crazy about her,” Stevie said. “She has personality. She has character. She has a certain …”
    “Stevie-ness?” Phil said.
    “You might put it that way,” Stevie acknowledged.
    “Come over to my place on Friday,” Phil said. “We can go riding and to the movies.”
    “Great,” Stevie said. She could picture the evening already. They’d ride, then discuss Teddy and No-Name through dinner, then choose a movie with horses in it.Mr. Marsten would probably drive them to the movie in the family pickup truck, which always had odds and ends of horse gear in the back. For a horse-crazy girl, it was the best possible kind of date.
    “I can’t wait,” she added.
    “One other thing,” Phil said casually.
    She knew Phil’s ‘other’ things. They were usually the main thing, so she said, “Yeeeeeees?”
    “Cross County is going to be taking part in a dressage exhibition,” Phil said. “And nobody’s better at dressage than you.”
    “I’m not so sure about that,” Stevie said modestly.
    “Don’t tell me you’ve got some competition from another member of Horse Wise,” Phil said.
    “Carole and Starlight are getting pretty good,” she replied.
    “They’re still not as tight and disciplined as you,” Phil remarked. “Mr. Baker has given me a dressage test to practice, and I was hoping you could give me some pointers. Teddy is a good horse for dressage—he has those strong hindquarters, and he’s smart and takes direction well. The problem is me. I always make it look like work.”
    “That’s bad,” Stevie said. The heart of dressage was making it look as if the horse were doing everything from his own free will. The constant signals from the rider needed to be invisible.
    “I’m like a magician who telegraphs his tricks,” Phil said. “When it comes time to change tacks, you can see me sawing away with the reins. I get Teddy so agitated, he practically tips over.”
    “Whoa!” Stevie said. “The first rule in dressage is to respect your horse’s judgment and not try to do everything yourself.”
    “I can see that I have a lot to learn from you.”
    “It’s taken you this long to figure that out?” Stevie teased.
    “So you’ll teach me?” Phil said. “It’s a trade?”
    “I can ride No-Name as much as I want in return for helping you with your dressage?” said Stevie dreamily. “Mmmmm. I think you’ve got yourself a deal.”
    “So I’ll see you on Friday,” Phil said.
    “I think I’ve almost got my parents persuaded to let me take the commuter bus to Berryville,” Stevie said. Berryville was a tiny town within walking distance of the Marstens’ place. “Tonight I’ll really work on them, and by Friday—with a little luck—I’ll be riding that bus.” Until now, whenever Stevie wanted to go over to Phil’s, she’d had to get one of her parents to drive her. Since both her parents were lawyers who worked